Nearly thirty years later, despite evidence to the contrary, articles related to the disease and the practice of douching persist, even as recently as seen here in early September 2013. Many of the claims are sourced to a variation on theme of a single citation; “Douching: Perceived Benefits but Real Hazards” by W. Steven Pray & Joshua J. Prey. That article was originally published in U.S. Pharmacist in 2004, but has been reprinted in full online at a reputable website, where it remains a top hit for string searches on endometriosis+douching. In the article, authors state (emphasis ours):

“[A]mong women who douche and have PID, there is an *increased risk of endometriosis* and upper genital tract infection.”

PID, or endometritis, is an inflammation or irritation of the lining of the uterus; it is not the same as endometriosis [National Library of Medicine]. That statement is cited to the following reference (emphasis ours):

The word “endometriosis” does not appear in that study, yet it continues to be widely cited as a source of confirmation regarding the claim that endometriosis and douching are linked. Other, even earlier studies are also sometimes cited, yet none ever claimed more than a speculative link between douching, retrograde menses and endometriosis.

“A study of douching and endometriosis found that recent and frequent douching in a group of women with clinical pelvic inflammatory disease was associated with endometritis and upper genital tract infections in those women with normal or intermediate vaginal flora.”

In another related study to determine the effects of vaginal douching specifically on fertility itself [Baird, Weinberg, Voigt, Daling. Vaginal douching and reduced fertility. Am J Public Health. 1996 June; 86(6): 844–850], authors concluded there was a potential link between douching and reduced fertility; however, they maintained that “further research is needed to determine whether the relationship is casual and, if so, to what extent it is mediated by pelvic infection“; specifically noting that “few women in [the study sample] had been diagnosed with endometriosis, and douchers were *not more likely to report being diagnosed with the condition than non-douchers.*” (Emphasis ours)